The Blank Slate cover art

The Blank Slate

The Modern Denial of Human Nature

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The Blank Slate

By: Steven Pinker
Narrated by: Victor Bevine
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

Recently many people have assumed that we are blank slates shaped by our environment. But this denies the heart of our being: human nature.

Violence is not just a product of society; male and female minds are different; the genes we give our children shape them more than our parenting practices. To acknowledge our innate abilities, Pinker shows, is not to condone inequality but to understand the very foundations of humanity.

©2003 Steven Pinker (P)2019 Penguin Audio Consciousness & Thought Movements Neuroscience & Neuropsychology Philosophy Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Sociology Thought-Provoking Socialism Capitalism

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Critic reviews

"A passionate defence of the enduring power of human nature...both life-affirming and deeply satisfying." (Daily Telegraph)

"Brilliant...enjoyable, informative, clear, humane." (New Scientist)

"Startling.... This is a breath of air for a topic that has been politicized for too long." (Economist)

All stars
Most relevant
The best pop science book I have read so far. Pinker’s data driven approach embedded in rational and human-centred focus of the nature-nurture debate is refreshing. The writing style is skill full but yet not overly self-celebrating. The narrator did a good job. 20 hours of listening without losing interest, actually the opposite! I went back to chapters because I did not wanted to miss any detail. 5/5 ⭐️

A masterpiece of pop science writing

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Pinker takes on the sacred cows of modern liberalism and shows them up for the frauds they are

A Brilliant book that is still relevant

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Mainly a well argued and balanced book that attempts to describe the human condition as nuanced and complex. Some glib statements made it less convincing but overall I can forgive these as the author tries to point out the gaps in our current knowledge. An enjoyable an admirable assertion that the scientific method is by far the best method we have of getting closer to it.

Expertly researched with some caveats

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This book has lost none of its currency in the 2 decades since it was written. Absolutely fascinating and interesting - not least the sections on politics and gender, as well as the arts and children.

Extremely fascinating and enlightening listen

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I'm on a reading roll!! I love how this book flows. Every chapter worth reading. Definitely will come back to it very soon. Also it shows just how much Pinker loves language when he draws attention to its properties any chance he gets. And then he also quotes Shakespeare and Orwell a couple of times. I can't even. Oh and he drags his fellow academics just enough in this one, it makes it entertaining but kind.

Important, fascinating, argumentative, kind.

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